‘You have to expect it’: Blake bracing for bombardment in biggest game of the year

Any winger would have struggled under Nathan Cleary’s bombs last week, and Waqa Blake knows he’ll have to expect more of the same in Friday’s finals match against Canberra.

Waqa Blake knows he’ll be targeted on Friday. Picture; Mark Kolbe/Getty Images

Eels winger Waqa Blake expects to be targeted by the Raiders every time they are in a position to send bombs his way after he had a nightmare trying to deal with Nathan Cleary’s right boot during last Friday’s qualifying final loss.

It was a brutal night against his former club with Blake spilling three bombs that any winger in the competition would have struggled with.

Blake will likely be peppered with kicks from Canberra’s Jack Wighton and Jamal Fogarty on Friday but says that’s part of the job after he was moved from centre to the win earlier in the season.

Waqa Blake apologised to his teammates after the Panthers punished one of his mistakes last week. Picture; Mark Kolbe/Getty Images

“You have to expect it every week,” he said.

“Every kicker in the NRL can float it, but Nathan is at the best of it. But I am excited by the challenge.

“I remember I played with at Penrith. After the game I was just like, ‘you got me’.

“But other than a few errors I thought we definitely tried hard.

“Just a few moments, especially for myself that I needed to own, and other than that I thought the first half and then the first 10 minutes of the second half we played well.

“Just knowing Cleary‘s bombs, it’s hard to practise for. No one kicks as well as him.

“I was there when he debuted, he has always been class. And you can see it now.”

Brad Arthur and Waqa Blake at Eels training on Monday. Picture; Mark Kolbe/Getty Images

Asked how he could improve after a tough night at the office, Blake kept it simple.

“Just catch the ball. That's it,” he said.

“Do more practice, watch back what I can do better. But other than that it's just owning my moments. I have learned from that now, and looking forward to this week.

“It's always going to happen. It’s what you do about it now.”

Blake said his former teammates didn’t give it to him after his mistakes and wasn’t worried about potentially being dropped by coach Brad Arthur for the biggest game of the year.

“I'm lucky to be playing first grade every week, and after that performance ... I know what I am capable of,” he said.

“Little moments like that I have to own. It’s not on the team, it’s on myself. I just have to own it

“He (Arthur) just told me to flush it. There‘s nothing I can do now. We can’t go back and play Penrith again until later on. We can only focus on Canberra.”

Skipper Clint Gutherson said Friday’s loss was on everyone and not just Blake, and backed his winger to bounce back against the Raiders.

“It was one of those nights. Cleary had it on a string,” he said.

“We were trying to help him but sometimes the rugby league ball is a cruel thing. We got around him. It’s not just on him. It’s a team sport. He’s pretty quick to bounce back, and we need to.”